Cartons



March 14, 1961 G. E. STRUBLE 2,974,851

CARTONS Filed Dec. 2, 1957 INVENTOR. GLENN E. STRUBLE ATTORNEYS UnitfidStates Patent?) CARTONS Glenn E. Struble, Hamilton, Ohio, assignor toDiamond National Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Dec. 2,1957, Ser. No. 700,084

4 Claims. (Cl. 229-40) This application relates to cartons for packagingand displaying a plurality of articles, particularly articles of likedimension which are somewhat fragile.

The carton provided by this invention is particularly suited for forminga package which may be used for displaying the packaged articles withoutthe necessity of a set-up operation or the like, and in which relativelyfragile articles such as gass jars or the like may be packaged withsafety. The blank for packaging the articles is of generally rectangularoutline and is devoid of knockout portions or the like, thereby beingrelatively inexpensive to manufacture. The blank may be easilyformedinto a sleeve-like container or carton which surrounds the articles andretains them securely within the carton, while openings are provided inat least one wall of the carton through which portions of the packagedarticles may protrude to display their contents. The carton is,therefore, particularly suited to the packaging and displaying of aplurality of glass jars or the like containing various grocery itemssuch as jellies, pickles, olives or the like which may be offered ingroups or combinations of difierent types of the same item.

When packaging such relatively fragile articles it is necessary toseparate adjacent articles from each other to avoid breakage. In fact,in some cases requirements are set forth by governmental agenciesregulating the manner in which such articles must be separated duringshipment. Since a number of the articles are enclosed within the cartonit is necessary to provide suitable buffers between them to guardagainst breakage during ship ment and to comply with such regulations.In accordance with this invention these buffers are provided as parts ofthe carton which are folded into position between the packaged articles,thereby performing the additional function of defining the displayopenings in the walls of the cartons.

Accordingly, a primary object of this invention is to provide apackaging and display carton for a plurality of articles having likedimensions wherein display openings are provided in the walls of thecarton extending a major portion of the height thereof, and of lesswidth than the diameter of the articles, providing for extension of apart of each article outwardly of the carton and also providing bufiersbetween adjacent articles to guard against breakage.

Another object of the invention is to provide a blank for forming such acarton which is of simple and economical construction.

A further object of the invention is to provide a packaging and displaycarton for a plurality of cylindrical articles of like dimensionswherein display openings are formed in the walls of the carton for eachof the packaged articles, and wherein the display openings are definedby flaps which fold inwardly of the carton between adjacent articles,and including extension pieces on each of those flaps extending betweenarticles, to provide buffers of double thickness material extending amajor portion of the width of the carton between adjacent articles.

2,974,851 Patented Mar. 14, 1961 a carton according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through a carton formed from the blank ofFig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a top view of the carton of Fig. 2, partially in plan andpartially insection, showing the arrangement of buffers between adjacentarticles.

Referring to the drawing, shown in Figs. 13 is a carton blank divided byscore lines 310, 311, 312 and 313 into foldably connected wide andnarrow panels, including the top panel 315, the rear panel showngenerally as 316, the bottom panel 317, a front panel indicatedgenerally at 318, and the glue flap 319.

Both the front and rear panels are provided with openings through whichjars or similar articles to be packaged may protrude, and these openingsare each of lesser width than the major diameter of .the jars. The sidesof the first set of such openings are defined by score lines 320 and 321which are connected at opposite ends by curved slits 322, 322 and 323.The slits 322 and 323 are intersected by a slit 325 through the rearpanel 316 which defines the complementary flaps 326 and 327, while slits322' and 323 are intersected by a slit 330 extending generally acrossfront panel 318 and having a curved lower edge 331'where it intersectswith slit 323. This slit thus defines flaps of unequal size, the narrowflap 332 being at the end of the carton, and the other flap includingthe main flap portion 334 and 'a buffer portion 335 connected along ascore or fold line 336.

The next set of flaps defining an opening in rear panel 316 is formedcomplementary to those just described in panel 318, and thus the smallcurved slit 340 interrupting hinge line 310, and the larger curved slit342 interrupting hinge line 311, are joined by a longer transverse slit343 having a curved end 344 where it intersects slit 342, providing anarrow flap 345 connected along hinge line 346 with panel 316, and awider flap including the main flap portion 348 hinged to panel 316 alongscore line 349 together with a buffer 350 having a folding connectionalong line 351 with flap 348.

The opposed opening in front panel 318 is provided by further curvedslits 342' and 340 connected by the transverse slit 343' including acurved end 344', defining the flap 345' which is hinged to the remainderof panel 318 along score line 346. It will be noted that score lines 349and 346' are directly opposite each other. The remainder of the materialis connected along score line 349' (opposite score line 346) to panel318, and includes the main flap 348' and buffer 350' connected alongscore line 351'.

It will be obvious from inspection of the drawings that flaps 345', .348and 350' correspond to flaps 332, 334 and 335, respectively, and it willbe further noted that the arrangement of flaps 345, 348 and 350 in rearpanel 316 is complementary to the opposite flaps 345', 348' and 350' inpanel 318. Thus, when the carton is assembled into flaps and buffersfolded to the interior of the carton between the adjacent articles, thebuffers 335 and 350 each will extend beyond a vertical plane through thecenter of the carton, as shown in Fig. 3, providing a double thicknessof material between the adjacent articles. Obviously, the constructionin each subsequent pair of opposed openings will be the same, and thus afurther description is unnecessary. The final opening in panel 318 willinclude symmetrical panels 326' and 327' of the same type shown in thefirst opening in panel 316.

As will be observed particularly from the illustrations of the carton inFigs. 2 and 3, the curved or arcuate slits a such as 322, 323, 340 and.342 provide small horizontally extending tabs or platforms 360 at thetop and 362 at the bottom which cover the top and bottom protrudingportions of the packaged articles. Furthermore, referring particularlyto Fig. 3, at leasttwo of the flaps which extend between adjacentarticles will include bullies flaps or portions which extend beyond thecenter of the carton so as to provide a double thickness of materialbetween adjacent articles. I

While the form of the article 'herein described constitutes thepreferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that theinvention is not limited to the precise form of the article, and thatchanges may be vmade therein without departing from the scope of thefragile articles in a row with portions protruding from the carton,comprising a generally rectangular sheet of foldable material includingupper and lower edges and opposed side edges, four parallel transversescore lines extending between said opposed side edges and definingbetween the upper and lower edges a top, first side, bottom, secondside, and glue-flap panel in the order set forth, transverse cut linesextending in the direction of and along said vfour parallel score lines,said cut lines being disposed in opposed pairs at opposed marginalportions of the first and second side panels, longitudinally disposedcut lines in said side ,panels and extending diagonally between andintersecting each pair of said opposed transverse cut lines, pairs oftransversely spaced and longitudinally extending score lines extendingfrom terminal ends of said opposed pairs of transverse cut lines, saidopposed pairs of transverse cut lines, diagonal cut lines, and pairs oftransversely spaced score lines defining longitudinally extendingadjacent pairs of foldable flaps, said diagonal cut lines in the sidepanels being oii-set with respect to each other and said adjacent flapsof a pair in each of said side panels including one fiap having a largerarea than the other and generally tapering from end to end, the flap inone of said side panels having the larger area being disposed in opposedrelation to the flap having a lesser area in the other side panelwhereby in an erected blank forming the container,

the lesser area flap will be overlapped by a larger area flap when saidoverlapping flaps are disposed transversely of said top and bottompanels and inwardly of said side panels. a

2. The blank of claim 1; said transverse cut lines of each pair having adiiierent length, said longitudinal score lines being disposed inangular relation with respect to said four parallel score lines fordefining with said adjacent pair of flaps tapering openings in saidblank when the container is erected.

3. The blank of claim 2; said transversecut lines being arcuate.

4. The blank of claim 3; said arcuate cut lines ex-- tending into saidside panels, the .cut lines adjacent said bottom panel having a largerradius than the arcuate cut lines adjacent said top and glue-flap panelsand forming sector-shaped sections integral and coplanar with said top,bottom, and glue-flap panels.

References Cited in the tile of this patent V UNITED STATES PATENTS2,205,157 Schrell' June 18, 1940 2,527,702 "Buttery Oct. 31, 19502,815,857 Sester Dec. 10, 1957 2,823,797 Amatel Feb. 18, 1 958 2,828,008Fryburger Mar/2 5, 1958 2,881,914 Woeber et al. Apr. 14, .1959

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